‘Fortune Favours the bold….’
Bexhill Chess Club is lucky to have a great core of leading juniors, some of whom are pictured here, looking relaxed at St Marks, waiting for the arrival of opponents Lewes in the Knockout Final of the Sussex League on Friday 16 May.
Andy Nguyen and Luke Chapman (both seated R) formed the talented and winning duo on Boards 2 and 3. (We recently featured Rose and Harry – not on this evening’s team – seated L. There will be a feature on the recent successes of another rising Junior, Sam Merchant, to follow soon!)
But this night’s events were a historic First for Bexhill Chess Club overall– so please read on!
On Board 1, Howard Tebbs, our highest rated player, faced Henry Adams, who outrated Howard by some 50 ELO points and who had defeated Luke impressively only last week in Lewes’ victory in the Watson Trophy Final. It would be a tough ask of Howard with the Black pieces. White’s formation looked like a hybrid of a London system: d4, Bf4, e3 with a Queen’s Gambit: c4, Nc3, Bd3, Qc2. Howard responded with a Dutch Stonewall set-up: …f5, e6, d5, c6 and pieces deployed Be7 and Nf6-e4, with Nbd7-f6 in support. It looked solid. Black had a good N posted on e4. But his c8 Bishop was locked in, only to be expected in this formation, and with a latent weak pawn at e6. Both sides castled K-side, and the stage was set for Q-side play.
Howard improved the lot of his bishop with …b6, Bb7, (though crucially this removed support for e6) while White finally occupied the hole at e5 with a N. Adams wasn’t tempted to instantly probe the e6 weakness by stepping Ng5 which Black would parry and then gain tempi and a k-side pawn storm with …h6 and g5. Black’s N on e4 would at some stage be kicked away by f3, and Ns were exchanged on c3. As a (much lower-rated!) spectator, I had wanted to see a Black pawn roller immediately with …g5 harassing the Bf4 just as soon as White’s N had gone to e5, before the N’s were exchanged but maybe this was too risky an attempt to seize the initiative and focus on the K-side? The pawn on h3 would have been a target and Black’s Q could have joined in after …Qe8. White cracked on with Q-side expansion (b4) and Howard met it head on with …c5. It still seemed to be preferable (from a spectator viewpoint ( was I missing something?) not to have challenged where White wanted to play but pushed the K-side?
The liquidation of central pawns left the Bb7 hanging on the open file after White’s Rb1. The B, still on f4, was X-raying the b8 square which Black’s Rook would need if it was to challenge control of the b-file. Black defended with …Qc8 – leaving it between his rooks – (the White Ne5 controlling d7). While White had his own Rooks united on the back rank.
On c8 the Q became vulnerable. White opened the centre dxc5 and after the recapture …Bxc5, the Black B and Q were lined up for a nasty pin Rc1. White set up a battery Qb3, Bc4 targeting the e6 pawn. Black countered by attacking the Rb1 with …Be4 and blocking the diagonal battery with …. Nd5. White took the Nd5 with the B on c4 unmasking the pin on the Bc5 and leaving an isolated Black pawn on d5. Although White’s N, now on d3, was in turn pinned by the …Be4, it was White who had multiple serious threats. White’s Qb3 was targeting the Black King on g8 along the diagonal, and if Qxd5+ ever happened the …Bc5 would fall. White was threatening Rxc5, and if Black tried …Bxd3 then Qxd5+ followed by Rxc5 (attacking the Black Q) and White’s R on b1 would have time to dodge the Black bishop on d3, or the bishop would instead fall to the Q after checking on d5. White took the Bishop, Rxc5. A few moves later Black resigned, a piece down.
It was a gruelling battle but a credit to Howard, taking on and playing top class chess very consistently for the club only fairly recently. A point down, victory for the team overall wasn’t promising.
Howard (front L) hard at work on top board:
On Board 2, Andy ( seated next to Howard) challenged Peter Farr who was rated some 40 ELO points higher. With the White pieces, Andy signalled aggressive intent with 1.e4. A Classical French Defence developed, with Andy choosing to advance after 1..e6, 2.d4, d5 3. Bd3, Nf6 4.e5, Nfd7. A locked structure formed quickly, White playing successively Ne2, c3, a3, b4!? (a thematic idea in the Advance but here offering a poisoned pawn on d4). Black played …c5, Nc6, Qb6, a5, then …c4 locking the chains rather than accept the d4 bait. It was here that spectators watched a very bold, positional pawn sacrifice, b5!? Was this a theoretical novelty? Something Andy had prepared? On the surface it seemed to have made no sense with a totally undeveloped q-side for White. However, it became clear that the idea was to place a rook on the half-open b-file with tempo and reach a position where the Black Bishop on f8 was forced to exchange and cede White control of the black squares inside Black’s lines. And it made sense not to allow the exchange of pawns …axb4, which would leave Black with a protected passed pawn on c4 and possible pressure on the pawns on b4 and a3. But was the compensation worth a pawn?
Black took the pawn, …Qxb5 (the dislocation by refusing it by retreating the N from c6 would be compounded by White consolidating with gain of Q-side space after pushing a3-a4). After White’s a4 and Ba3 (offering exchange of Bishops), Black played a startling …Nb4!? blocking the diagonal, preventing the bishop exchange, but placing itself en prise and if White captured it -cxb4, Black would have two connected passed pawns on b4 and c4 as great compensation – they could crush the crowded White pieces on their original squares. Andy wisely refused the piece offer. Black captured …NxBc2 and after Qxc2 the question was back to the black-squared bishops a3/f8. Possibly to keep the option of K-side castling open, Black opted to exchange on a3, but this helped White’s development after Nxa3. There was a great outpost at b5 waiting for the N! Black’s B on c8 was locked in and both Black’s rooks had no prospects. White took the open file Rb1. Black retreated…Qd8- forced into un-developing!
Andy switched to the space on the K-side, with 0-0 and f4. But would an attack with no bishops do much damage?
Black tried to free himself with …f6(after …0-0 ). It attacked White’s pawn chain at the head, in time-honoured French Defence fashion but in so doing weakened his own structure at …e6. Black’s N displaced awkwardly (White’s Rb1 eyeing it) to …b6 to defend the e6 pawn from his bishop at c8. White now advanced with Nb5-d6 and, strangely to this spectator’s mind, exchanged his fantastic N for the sleeping Bc8! The logic became clear after White advanced from f4-f5. Black’s pieces were all on the back rank (Rb8, Nc8, Qd8, Rf8). Black captured f6xe5. Andy captured f5xe6. Would White’s lone e6 pawn survive? Black exchanged Rs on f1. Black consolidated his pawns with …e5-e4. White threatened the R on b8 with Qf4 and triangulated to a powerful centralised position at e5 behind the White passed pawn at e6 which had thus become the tip of a wedge in the heart of Black’s position, behind Black’s central pawn barrier. Andy’s strategic objective was fulfilled.
So, each side with just Q, N and R, but White’s Q and N co-ordinating fluently, Black’s position began to collapse. The White Q on e5 and N reaching f4 together threatened the triangle of Black pawns on d5, c4, e4 and Black resigned as the pawns dropped.
This was very bold, impressive play by Andy, a long-term positional sacrifice of a pawn followed by a co-ordinated flow of just a few pieces to execute his plan. Had this been classical music it would have had the clarity and harmony of a string quartet rather than a full orchestra. Bravo maestro!
With the match at 1-1, we turn to Board 4, where James Lumsden faced Richard Welford, who he had played recently and won. James’ rating was 40 ELO points higher and perhaps James felt at the outset there were expectations of him, especially having the White pieces. James opened with a Jobava London system: d4, Bf4, e3, Nc3, as Black’s set-up was a Leningrad Dutch: …f5, e6, Nf6, g6, Nbd7. James struck early with 6.h4!? Black countered in the centre with …e5. James doubled down with h4-h5!?, and with Black’s uncastled King, the threat of hxg6 (the h7 pawn being pinned by White’s Rh1), or if …Nxh5, White would sac the exchange and mate with Qxh5#! Black replied solidly with …Bg7. James renewed the threat of hxg6 by pinning the N with Bg5. This very early pressure seemed to be working, though it contradicted established principles of development before attacking.
James pressed again, moving a piece twice with Nd5, and h6 forcing …Bf8, and after…Be7 White exchanged N for B on e7. With Bc4 White prevented Black from castling. Black harassed the B with …Nb6 and it was eventually exchanged on its retreat square to b3, doubling White’s b-pawns. It seemed risky for Black, but he castled …0-0 despite White’s h6 pawn sitting on his doorstep, and White having a black-squared Bishop pinning the N on f6. Black managed to unpin the Q, and White’s uncastled King now looked vulnerable to Black opening the centre, e.g. if Black played… exd4. James pre-empted that by dxe5, but it did concede central control with Black’s pawns at e5, f5.
At some point Qs were exchanged and James tried a Rook lift Ra5!? to pressure the Black pawn along the rank at e5. But there was a back row threat to White’s K on e1. The R on a5 returned home to a1. James exchanged B for N on f6. Now the lone pawn on h6 was a liability in the endgame. James did manage to pick up the pawn on e5, but his extra pawn was doubled, and they were isolated on the q-side and blocked by a single black pawn on b7. In the R and P ending Black was able to walk his King round to pick up the h6 pawn and if anything, the better potential had tipped to Black. However, James managed to create a passed pawn on e4 which was more of a threat as the Black pawns on g6, h7 were slow starters. White’s king was active, blocking them, and, with repeated checks from the Black rook, a draw was agreed.
James had put pressure on from the start, had asked all the questions, and, in the face of calm defence, when he could have faltered because his probes had not cracked the position, he played an accurate and active ending. Well done, James!
So, 1.5 – 1.5. Everything hung on Board 2 as Luke had Black against Matthew Masani. Luke outrated his opponent by 70 points. Here we had another demonstration of ‘fortune favouring the bold’. Luke’s defence to the d4 opening … Nf6, d5, c5 was open and active from the start. He refused to lock in his Bishop c8 with …e.6 and played a dynamic, speculative …a5?! But this weakened his pawn structure and left a hole at b5. When Luke did release his e-pawn it was straight to e5, and it cost him his pawn at d5. So, Luke was playing a pawn down, even after recovering the gambit pawn on c5 with his Bishop. Unfortunately, this material deficit was compounded by his N on f6 being pinned by White’s Bg5, attacked by a N on d5, and now a Q on f3. The Bishop on c5 was forced back to defend on e7, and Black was immediately saddled with doubled pawns on f6, f7 after the exchanges on f6.
At this point, it seemed to me that White misplayed strategically by castling 0-0-0, where Black had open files for the major pieces and could throw his a-pawn at the King on the q-side. And White had neglected to develop his K-side pieces giving tempi for a Black initiative. Luke charged on with …a5-a4 with his own King still on e8 and one rook still on h8. Luke had no intention of castling into a shattered King side but executed a plan to lift the King to e7 and set up a barrier of pawns on f5, e5, supported by f6 to control the centre. White’s plan to exchange pieces with an endgame advantage showed with Bxc6, but the recapture…bxc6 left an open b-file, and the a-pawn intending to advance to a3. Queens were exchanged on b4.
With q-side pawns on b2, c3, b4, White at last developed his N, to f3!! On the q-side Black had just 2 pawns on c6, a4. Once the White N got to the q-side it was possible these isolated pawns could drop. But Luke had activated both Rs to the q-side, while his centralised K on e7 covered entry points for a white R on the open d-file, once those rooks could develop. After its mini tour, the White N landed on the c5 outpost but soon exchanged the last minor pieces with Nxe6. White played b2-b3, allowing Black’s a-pawn to by-pass it with a4-a3. Was it walking into the White camp to be swallowed? White’s King was needed on the q-side for that purpose, while Black’s King was getting active in the centre after Kxe6.
At this late stage in the game, and all the other games having finished, the tension was high, as Luke’s clock showed 22 mins and only 8 mins for his opponent. Black’s pawn, hanging on a3 was abandoned, as Luke’s rook picked up a White pawn at e3. White had a distant passed b-pawn and pawns h2, g3, f4. Black had pawns f6, f5 and a paased pawn at e5 which he pushed to e4, then e3, and his King was in support at d3. White’s b-pawn had got to b6, his King trying to hide from Black’s rook checks.
Luke had 8 mins left, his opponent 38 seconds on the clock!
Black promoted first and White had to sacrifice his rook for the new queen. White pushed his passed pawn on h4. Luke’s rook switched to the h-file and picked it up and still the Rook was afterwards able to catch the b-pawn as it promoted. The Black rook was forced to sacrifice itself in his turn. But ….that left the Black King centrally placed to pick off White’s remaining pawns and promote one of his last (doubled ) f-pawns before the White King could get back. Game Over! A ‘close run thing’ as Wellington said about the Battle of Waterloo.
Bexhill 2.5 – Lewes 1.5.
It was an exciting chess match, suspenseful till the very end, and played in a great combative as well as courteous spirit by both sides. Whilst we thank Lewes for their visit and a great contest, we are justly proud that this season of achievements across the board, outlined in these News pages, has culminated in a trophy. We hope to celebrate this on a future occasion and recognise the efforts of the whole team throughout the year. This victory in the Final is the emblem of that comprehensive effort throughout the year.